A Risk Taken
by Tears of the Angels
Summary: Alice has an important message for Black. It's a risky endeavor - she has to go to the prison, after all - but it's worth it. Now if she can only get him to stop being snarky long enough to listen...


"Alice! What a pleasant surprise!"

The girl smiled at the jester's warm welcome. "Good morning, White."

A harsh voice crackled from the mask on White's hip. "You're back again?"

"Hello to you too, Black," Alice replied, not the least bit fazed by his rudeness.

"Would you like to change the season?" the nicer Joker asked, holding up a deck of cards.

"No, thank you. I was hoping I could talk to you, though," the outsider replied.

"So you're just wasting time. Well, unlike you, we're busy, so why don't you go be a freeloader somewhere else?" the mask retorted.

"Ignore him," White said with a gentle smile. "There's always time for you, young miss. But there's no reason we can't play cards while we talk, right?"

Alice returned the jester's smile. "Sure," she answered, taking his proffered hand as he led her to a table.

Black growled and tuned the two out as he stalked around the prison. The girl's visits annoyed him. Hearing his counterpart flirt with her was sickening, and the way she responded to the clown's affections just made it worse. _If she only knew…she's so stupid!_

He would never admit it, but it bothered him that she never came to visit him. She wandered into the prison, but that was different. She didn't do it because she wanted to see him, and that just aggravated him even further.

Not that he could blame her. The prison wasn't a happy place. It was dark and cold, in complete contrast to her bright, cheerful demeanor. The circus and the jester did fit her better than the prison.

He heard her giggle in response to something the other Joker said and the warden gritted his teeth. Why? Why did he hate that so much? Why did it annoy him that she was so happy with the stupid jester? It made perfect sense; he was nicer to her and gave her special treatment. Of course she'd spend her time with him. She'd never consciously, willingly come to see him in the prison.

He was about to turn to patrol the prison, almost hoping a prisoner had escaped so he would have something to distract him from these thoughts, when his eye caught something bright blue coming toward him. He settled back against the wall and crossed his arms, forcing a disinterested look onto his face as he waited for her to approach.

"Hi, Black," she said lightly, coming to a stop in front of him.

"What do you want? Didn't I say I'm busy?" he snapped, turning his head so he didn't have to look into the blue eyes that he knew were staring up at him.

"I wanted to talk to you," she replied honestly, not taking her eyes off of the warden.

"You really are a spoiled brat, aren't you?" Black turned back to her with a glare, determined not to fall under the spell her eyes seemed to cast on him every time she was near. "What part of 'busy' don't you understand? Just because the damn clown puts off his duties to entertain your ass doesn't mean I have that luxury or that I want to."

He expected her to narrow her eyes, cross her arms, or put her hands on her hips, and shoot a sarcastic retort back at him. It was part of what he liked about her. She always bantered with him; it was like she wasn't afraid of him at all. However, a slightly hurt look crossed her face instead. "Didn't you hear anything I said to White?"

He was too stunned by her reaction to reply immediately. Why was she sad? She was used to his attitude by now, wasn't she? There was no way he was going to change, not for her, not even if he wanted to. Realizing he was acting out of character, he ignored the foreign twinge in his chest as he barked out a laugh. "Why would I listen to your conversations with that dumbass? His voice annoys the hell out of me, and yours isn't any better."

This time, he got the response he'd expected. Eyes narrowed and arms crossed, she turned away from him. "Fine. Then I'll just leave."

"That's what I've been telling you to do!"

Alice blushed slightly as she realized Black was right. _That was stupid,_ she told herself. Regaining her composure, she turned back to him, dropping her arms to her sides. "Fine. Then I'll stay here. I said I wanted to talk to you."

"What? This wasn't enough talking for you?" The warden leaned in close to her ear. "If you want to stay, I have the perfect place for you. But I don't tend to talk to prisoners."

The outsider shivered. She should've known he'd bring the conversation around to capturing her. She was about to respond with a sarcastic comment when she realized her chance. He wouldn't listen, so she'd show him.

Black's eye widened when he felt the girl's lips touch his. Sarcastic comments and glares he could take and understand. This, however, confused him to no end. What the hell was she doing? Was she really that stupid? Nobody came into physical contact with the warden, not unless they were looking for pain. Yet here this girl was, kissing him! He should lock her up for even thinking it was okay! But he found himself unable to, especially since he was enjoying it more than he would ever admit.

She pulled away just as he started to respond, and he had a strong urge to pull her to him and kiss her again. She had too much control at the moment and it didn't sit well with him. Besides, if she was going to be a tease, she was going to have to pay the price. He was going to make a comment along those lines when he made the mistake of looking into her eyes. It didn't matter what he told himself; there was no mistaking the way he felt when his ruby eye was captured by her sapphire pair. Her gaze was enrapturing, and he found himself at a loss for both words and actions at times. Why did he feel this way, and toward her in particular?

Mentally shaking himself, he stood back up to his normal height, putting distance between him and her bright eyes and soft lips. He forced a sneer onto his face. "What the hell was that for?!"

"Because…" The foreigner bit her lip and looked at the ground, making the warden groan internally. He was not immune to her cute actions, no matter how much he wanted to be. She looked up at him bashfully and said, so quietly he almost didn't hear it, "I love you."

Black had absolutely no response to that. It was something he had never expected to hear, especially not from her. This was a revelation he didn't know how to deal with. Even worse, he could feel himself blushing. So he reacted the only way he knew how. He resumed his cross-armed position against the wall and turned his head away from her. "Tch. You really are stupid, aren't you?"

Although he couldn't see her, she tilted her head and gave him a questioning look. "What do you mean?"

Feeling the need to regain the upper hand, he shot her a glare. "What did you expect me to do? Proclaim my love for you back? Get down on one knee and propose? Did you even think this through before you did it?"

"I-I did think it through," she stammered, and inwardly flinched. It was obvious she was lying. She'd focused so much on building up the confidence to tell him, she hadn't spent much time thinking about how he'd respond. She hadn't expected him to act happy or do any of the things he'd mentioned. She actually hadn't been sure what to expect.

A smirk appeared on Black's lips as he found himself sliding back into the position of power. "Oh, really?" He dropped his arms to his sides as he slowly walked toward her, enjoying how his advance made her step back. A few more steps and she found herself against a wall. The darker Joker put his hands against the wall on either side of her head, trapping her. "So tell me then, what exactly was your plan?" he purred, leaning closer to her. "What did you think would happen after you told me your feelings? Was kissing me part of the plan?" His smile widened. "How far were you planning on this going?"

She had no answer to his questions. She hadn't really planned anything out, not past convincing White to send her to the prison and confessing to Black. The kiss, while something she had been hoping for, had been spur of the moment. She hadn't expected him to react the way any of the other role holders would, but she wasn't sure how to respond to his actions. She searched her mind, desperate for something to say, but came up with nothing. She turned back to him and found herself unable to tear her gaze away from his steady stare.

The foreigner stiffened in surprise as the warden's lips pressed roughly against hers. His mouth moved on hers and she could feel his tongue searching for entrance, but she kept her mouth firmly closed. Frowning, he pulled her to him, threading the fingers of one hand in her hair before giving it just enough of a tug. She let out a small cry in pain and shock, and he took advantage of the opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth while entwining his fingers in her hair and pulling her closer to him.

Alice was embarrassed by the moan that escaped her lips as Black's mouth moved to her neck. She knew she shouldn't be enjoying this as much as she was. Reason told her to stop it, to push him away and tell him off, but she couldn't make her arms move. She felt hot and her mind was fuzzy. All she could think about was Black's lips on her neck, the heat of his body against hers, and the feeling of his arm wrapped around her.

"Black…stop…" she finally managed to whimper, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Why should I?" he asked huskily.

Alice shivered at the heat of his breath against her ear. "Please…"

"If that's what you really want, then why are you still holding on to me?"

It was only then that she realized she had her arms wrapped tightly around him, her fingers clutching the back of his jacket. She gasped in surprise and quickly dropped her hands to her sides.

The warden chuckled, gave her ear a light nip, eliciting a squeak and a jump from the girl, and let her go, sliding his hands along her body as he stepped back. His smirk grew into a grin as he took in the girl in front of him. Her hair was tangled and slightly mussed up in the back, her lips were swollen, and her skin was flushed. She'd have a hard time explaining her appearance to those idiots in the Clover Tower.

The outsider stared at Black, wanting to yell at him, demand an explanation, maybe even slap him. However, she didn't dare take a step, as her knees felt weak and her head was spinning. She was also working on denying her urge to throw her arms around him and pick up where they left off. "Wh-what –" she finally managed to breathe.

Still smiling, he leaned forward, hands on his hips. "That's what you get for being a tease."

His words cut through the fog in her brain. "Excuse me? How was I a tease?"

"The kiss you gave me was a joke. If you want to tell someone you love them, that's how you do it."

Her eyes widened and a blush colored her cheeks. "So…does that mean…you love me?"

Black's jaw almost dropped as he realized his mistake. _Damn it!_ How was she always able to throw him off? She'd even gotten him to admit his feelings for her without him realizing it. Even worse, she was in control once again.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest and turned away from her. "Like I'd fall in love with an annoying brat like you. You're just fun to mess with."

Alice smiled. He had recovered quickly, but not quickly enough. She'd also noticed his blush as he turned away. "Okay, Black," she said sweetly, deciding to let him win this time. She gave him a light kiss on the cheek and said, "Hope to see you soon," before turning and walking away without a backwards glance.

Black's eye widened as he felt her lips graze his cheek. He'd been about to say something sarcastic until she'd said those last words. She loved him and wanted to see him again. The warden closed his mouth as he watched the outsider walk away. He felt happier than he ever had before. And there was no way in hell he would ever admit it.

A small laugh sounded from not far away and he turned with a glare toward the jester. "What do you want?" he snapped, hoping he wasn't still blushing. The clown would never let him live it down if he saw that.

"You've made quite an impression on the young miss," White said. Then, smiling, he added, "And it seems she's done the same to you."

Black narrowed his eye at his counterpart, but decided not to bother answering, choosing instead to turn and walk away.

"Did you have fun?" White asked, just loud enough for Black to hear.

"Fuck you," Black replied without turning or stopping.

White laughed quietly before turning the opposite direction and heading back to the circus.


End file.
